Category: Brewery Tour

A concise brewery bio

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First Look – Arts District Brewing

The interwebs started leaking out news late Saturday night, and by Sunday morning it was official that Arts District Brewing would be open for business in the now traditional “Soft open” manner.
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With Brian Lenzo and Devon Randall as the beer focused duo of the project, my expectations were high. As I walked in and looked around the space, my first thought was that it looked a bit unfinished. I stopped myself and repeated the mantra that as long as the beer is pouring and good, the warehousechic would just melt away.
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And as long as I hewed to the hoppy, the beers were very good. The Traction IPA had a strong orange juicy taste and the Kablamo Rye IPA which burst with spice were delicious. Spot on and brightly hoppy and distinctive, not a muddle of bitterness that passes as IPA. Unfortunately, the supporting cast of beers did not impress much. The Whammy Wheat hit the wheat note solidly but was too light and a bit spritzy to me. The Mateo Golden Ale was a little potpourri and soapy. Lastly, I tried the Spirited Saison which, in a blind taste test, I would have pegged as a Hefeweizen and not a Belgian style.
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It is cool to walk in and see the brewing tanks below to the right and the finishing tanks in the middle of the rectangle bar. And I really like the outdoor patio which will soon have its own little bar which will have the full range of brews.

I will have to go back for a darker beer tasting to get the oatmeal stout as well as the Porter Rico which I overheard as a favorite on more than one occasion. After Sassy and Return of Sassy brewed in collaboration with Three Weavers and with the Pizza Port pedigree, I expected three pointers and slam dunks not free throws. More reviews to come.

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Canadian Brewery # 3 – Blindman Brewing

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Lacombe (ravine) in Alberta is the home to our last new Canadian brewery tour, Blindman Brewing.

Who have helpfully labeled all of their beers thusly:
batch 010 2015-november-21 longshadows ipa
batch 009 2015-november-7 blindman river session ale
batch 008 2015-october-30 to-be-named imperial stout
batch 007 2015-october-23 saison lacombe: automne
batch 006 2015-october-17 robust porter
batch 005 2015-october-9 longshadows ipa
batch 004 2015-october-8 blindman river session ale
batch 003 2015-september-17 blindman river session ale
batch 002 2015-september-14 saison lacombe: automne
batch 001 2015-september-13 blindman river session ale

When you are small you can add this much detail to your beer releases and I think it is super cool for this brewery that if Twitter is to be believed, opened this very month.

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Canadian Brewery # 2 – Twin Sails Brewing

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I could not point out Port Moody on a map if I had to save my life but that is where Twin Sails Brewing has set up shop under the leadership of twin brothers Clay and Cody Allmin, who have been home brewing for more than three years.

Out of the gate and with a new head brewer on board they have started with a line-up that consists of a hefeweizen, a marzen, a pilsner and a roggenweizen like a good like German brewery except in Canada.

Considering that the town is also home to Yellow Dog Brewing and Moody Ales, this might just be a destination all by itself.

 

 

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Greenbar Distillery

Last Sunday, beer buddy Richard and I went as far south as the 10 freeway in DTLA to visit the Greenbar Distillery and take their tour of the facility.
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This is the only distillery in Los Angeles and the rules governing their tasting room are archaic, at best. You can buy a bottle of rotgut on any corner in this town with no issue but a tasting room at the actual distillery can only sell bottles if you sign that you are taking it out of state as a gift and not opening it in the State of California. Which is of course completely unenforceable. They also have to carefully monitor the amount of tasting room pours.
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That stupidity out of the way, the tour at Greenbar is well done. The guides have the patter down cold but it isn’t just rote memorization. There appears to be a genuine care taken in all aspects of the process and a desire to be innovators and not just imitators. And plenty of information is delivered in the hour long tour.

Their procedure for creating whiskey is time consuming and out of the ordinary (using a tea bag of sorts to lower a melange of smoked woods into their barrels) as is their devotion to using spices, fruits and vegetables that are organic in their other spirits. And they have an extensive line-up from vodkas, to rums to bitters and liqueurs.
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My favorite was the brownish dusty gin under the Tru brand. It was bright and really featured a citrusy botanical mix. The spiced rum was also quite well done though not subtle by and stretch and their first attempt at whiskey was unique. It packed heat aplenty but also really brought the grain forward in a way I have not tasted in other whiskies.
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On the downside, the tequila seemed abrasive and non-complex for a Reposado and the Grand Poppy bitter liqueur was overly floral with a wicked vegetal bitter kick that had me looking for water.

The tour is fairly priced at $12 and allows for a second tasting to try the full spectrum of products plus a 20% store discount.

After the tour, I wanted to hit Mohawk Bend to try a gin and tonic and see how it tasted.

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Canadian Brewery # 1 – County Road Beer Co.

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This month, we are scanning for new breweries all across the country of Canada to mark the return of a Trudeau to power in government. We start…

…in the town of Wellington in Ontario, County Road Beer Co. opened their new brewery this year tied with an already established winery, Hinterland Wine.

The brewery opened with two beers – County Road 1 Blonde Ale and County Road 12 Farmhouse Saison which are available in bottles. Those were followed by a Red ale and an IPA. All bottles adorned with the appropriate road number.

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GABF Gold & Unknown Brewery # 3 – 7th Settlement

The last golden stop is at 7th Settlement of Dover, New Hampshire who won gold in the American Brown ale category for their 1623 Almighty Brown.

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7th Settlement Brewery is named for Dover, New Hampshire which according to the brewery is “the oldest permanent settlement in New Hampshire, and 7th in the New World.”

Their tag line of “Don’t Buy Beer from Strangers” is a succinct buy local plea that I think should be a nationwide mantra.

Now if I was tasting their beer, I would be sampling the following….(by year)

1623 Brown Ale then the 1896 wheat before moving to the Rear View Roggenbier then going on to the Amarillo Evening and their Milk Stout to round it out.

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GABF Gold & Unknown Brewery # 2 – BNS Brewing & Distilling

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There is one category that is incredibly hard to just medal, let alone strike gold.  That is the case for the American IPA category which had 336 competitors this year.  I would be hard pressed to drink that many IPA’s in a full year.  But BNS Brewing and Distilling from right here in California came out on top of the hop battle royale with their Revolver American IPA.

But this Santee brewery doesn’t just do hops with their Old West themed beers.  Here are my choices for a taster tray…..

Gunfighter Golden Ale,  Saloon Girl Saison, Flintlock American Pale Ale, Gatling Gun Imperial Stout.

And maybe they will have some patriotic spirits to go along with their beers in the near future.

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GABF Gold & Unknown Brewery # 1 – Melvin Brewing

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We start in Wyoming with a brewery that had roots in a much lauded restaurant and brewery, Thai Me Up.  Melvin Brewing is now moving from a 3bbl to a 30bbl system.  And that may boot them out of the category that they won this year, Small Brewpub of 2015.

They won gold for Chchchch-Cherry Bomb in the American Fruit Beer category and a bronze in the Fresh/Wet Hop Ale for their namesake IPA.

Let’s check out some other beers to try:

Killer Bees – “Clean, smooth, slow motion, easy drinkin’, honey. The palette cleanser extraordinaire. Perfect for mowing your unwatered lawn, sipping in the shower, or fishing on a Sunday. ”

Hubert MPA – “Some would just call him an IPA, but we call him an MPA. The Melvin Pale Ale. A welcomed hand shake to your taste buds.”

Clinic ISA – “This medicinal India Session Ale is perfect for drinking at work under your desk, on a deck under the sun in your skivvies, or chilling out on a chairlift. Let Melvin Clinic make it all better with this light, crisp, and fresh taste. ”

..or try their Trip Out Tripel.

 

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Vancouver Brewery # 3 – Heathen Brewing

Any place that calls it’s tap room a Feral Public House wins points in my book.  Se let’s take a look at Heathen Brewing, our last stop in Vancouver, Washington.

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Let’s go really hoppy and check out the bitter descriptions of Heathen Brewing.

Vantucky Pale Ale – “Pours a light orange color with a vague coppery hue. Subtle grapefruit, tangerine, and grassy tones assault the nose, while malty-grainy-ness eases up from the rear. This beer is firmly planted in that gray area between Pale Ale and IPA.”

Carnage Double IPA – “This golden straw-color Imperial IPA has a big bright hop flavor without harsh bitterness. Moderate clarity due to the slaughtering amount of dry hops, this low maltiness beer leaves your hop head wanting more.”

Malice Triple IPA – “Papa Malice has finally come to join the Malicious IPA family here at Heathen. We took inspiration from his son, Son of Malice, and combined even more hops, time, and evil into making this huge triple IPA.”

Son of Malice Imperial IPA – “A full bodied malt backbone dangerously balances the 95 IBUs until the bitter finish kicks in and leaves a hoppy residue that you can scrape off with your teeth. This IIPA has a sinister agenda that is best served at 50 degrees with malevolence.”

Oh and check out their Cedar-Aged Seins Belgian Tripel too.

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Vancouver Brewery # 2 – Doomsday Brewing

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Last month, I visited (through the magic of the interwebs) breweries in Idaho and lo and behold, I received a bottle of Idaho beers from one of the featured breweries, Sawtooth.  This month’s tour stuck in the NW and lo and behold, one of the breweries I chose to feature, Doomsday scheduled up a tasting right here in LA!  I feel the power of my blogging is growing stronger like Darth Vader.

Instead of a virtual taster tray, I was able to try the Solar Flare Citrus Wheat, Agent Orange IPA and the Ender Vanilla Porter.  All but the IPA suffered from a slight sour-tart taste that signaled an over-aged beer. The Wheat beer could be sold as a slight tart wheat but the porter fell flat to me.  The acidity cancelled out the vanilla and left the beer tasting funny. The IPA was fine.  Nothing that set my taste buds aflame but solid.  Their beers are available in bottle at Sunset Beer for you to decide your feeling on them.

Other beers to try include:

Beatdown Beet Wheat

“The pink beer, A unique experiment gone horribly right. We started with a blend of pale and wheat grains for the backbone, added some mild bittering hops for balance, then we went ahead and threw in a crate of beets for sugars, flavor, and of course, color. No artificial dyes here. The beety/earthy flavors hit hard on the nose and slowly fizz off of the tongue, leaving behind a manageable bitterness. This brew is a very light and crisp easy drinker.”

Undead Chihuahua Golden

“The Undead Chihuahua thinks its bigger than it actually is.  The 2-row base is blended with caramel malts and specialty grains to give a light and very drinkable texture. Light saaz and mt hood hop additions in the boil present a malty nose with a slightly bitter tail. This beer is all bark with no bite. Unless it’s chewing up your pant leg.”